Otherweb is an AI-powered news app with no ads and clickbait

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If I were to design a news app in 2024, Otherweb would be that app. About ten years ago, when I founded KnowTechie, the idea was to simplify the overwhelming world of tech news.

Much like Otherweb, we started with a vision to distill boring 2,000-word articles into concise 200-word summaries that delivered the essence without the fluff.

This resonated because I knew then, and still firmly believe, that around 80% of readers don’t want or have the time for long-form content—they lack attention spans. This insight isn’t based on extensive research or science but a decade of observing and understanding reader behaviors.

The Otherweb app, the brainchild of an Austin-based startup led by my friend Alex Fink, is a unique AI-powered news platform. It’s not just another news app but a transformative tool that promises to reshape how we consume news and offer a ‘better way’ to do it.

Otherweb stands out by pledging no clickbait, bias, or ads. Here’s what makes it unique:

Otherweb, with its AI-powered curation and streamlined experience, is your personal news assistant.

It automatically collects articles from across the web every minute and runs them through specialized AI models to generate metadata like summaries, alternative headlines, and content traits. You can try out a web version of their assistant here.

This real-time filtering and hyper-personalization of your news feed, delivered in a clean, distraction-free environment, respects your time and preferences, relieving you from the overwhelming task of sifting through endless overly sensationalized headlines and news articles.

As Fink explains: “We collect articles once per minute, and as soon as they’re parsed, we run them through all our AI models to generate metadata that includes summaries, alt headlines, and various measured traits.”

You can check out a mockup of the clean interface and summarized article format below:

Otherweb Concierge feature uses advanced language models to compose personalized briefings tailored to users’ unique interests. I recommend new users spend 5-10 minutes customizing their settings to get relevant content.

Otherweb actively encourages user input by letting folks vote on articles and provide feedback — shaping the news in a way that genuinely values user voices.

How does Otherweb generate revenue?

While squarely focused on quality content for users, Otherweb plans to monetize through paid tools and services for journalists and publications powered by the same proven AI models. Potential offerings include assisted research, automated draft summarization, and predictive analytics.

Fink tells me Otherweb’s user base skews older, more educated, and represents a healthy mix of political leanings. This means that the app caters to diverse users, from tech-savvy professionals to news enthusiasts. 

User feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, resonating with heavy news consumers and those who had previously tuned out due to the negativity of traditional media. 

On Google Play, the app has earned a 4.0-star rating based on 16 reviews, with users highlighting how Otherweb AI-powered filters help them cut through the noise and protect them from the pervasive clickbait and low-quality content found on many other platforms.

They appreciate how the app allows them to focus on the essential news and insights, without the distractions that often accompany traditional news consumption.

Despite the generally positive reception, Otherweb has faced some criticism. Emerging Tech Brew points out that the app could become overly curated, limiting users’ exposure to diverse viewpoints.

Others have expressed concerns about Otherweb business model’s sustainability, given its commitment to prioritizing information quality over profits (god forbid, right?).

What excites me most is how Otherweb mission aligns perfectly with KnowTechie’s founding goal of simplifying tech news into digestible summaries.

As they continue evolving, their AI-driven, transparent approach is restoring public trust in an industry that desperately needs it. This is the future of how we’ll all consume news efficiently.

Otherweb is available on the App Store, Google Play, and on the web at Otherweb.com

What’s your take on the news these days? Do you plan on using Otherweb for your daily news needs? Drop us a line below in the comments, or carry the discussion to our Twitter or Facebook.

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Kevin Raposo

Kevin is KnowTechie's founder and executive editor. With over 15 years of blogging experience in the tech industry, Kevin has transformed what was once a passion project into a full-blown tech news publication. Shoot him an email at kevin@knowtechie.com or find him on Mastodon or Post.